23andMe is potentially selling more than just genetic data – the personal survey info it collected is just as much a privacy problem

For companies like 23andMe, consumers are as much the product as the DNA test kits. Veronika Oliinyk/iStock via Getty Images Plus

As soon as the genetic testing company 23andMe filed for bankruptcy on March 23, 2025, concerns about what would happen to the personal information contained in its massive genetic and health information database were swift and widespread. A few days after, a U.S. judge ruled that the company could sell its consumer data as part of the bankruptcy.

The attorneys general of several states warned their citizens to delete their genetic data. California urged its citizens to request that 23andMe delete their data and destroy their spit samples. Michigan’s attorney general released a statement warning that “23andMe collects and stores some of the most sensitive personal information, our genetic code.”